Digging a little deeper I have found the Hewitt-Sperry Automatic Airplane, which first flew in 1917.
Andy

Hi again Andy

Even closer! Right war, wrong country...

All the best

Rowan

Can't find any British ones but I have found the French Le Prieur rockets, which were used against observation balloons and airships and were first used in the Battle of Verdun in 1916.
Andy

Hi Andy

They were unguided rockets. You had the right type of weapon before...

All the best

Rowan

Ok this is my last guess, as I have pages open evreywhere now .
Is it the German Siemens torpedo glider, a wire-guided flying missile which would essentially have comprised a naval torpedo with an attached airframe.
Andy

Hi Andy

Spot on! (At least, that's the earliest one I know of). Dr. Siemens suggested the wire-guided torpedo fitted with biplane wings in 1914, and flight testing began in January 1915 using airships as carriers.

Over to you for the next question.

All the best

Rowan

Thanks Rowan, I thought I would get there in the end.
Ok my question now.
Who took out a patent for a turbojet engine in 1921?
Andy

Maxime Guillaume

:)

Correct Warren.
The first patent for using a gas turbine to power an aircraft was filed in 1921 by Frenchman Maxime Guillaume. His engine was to be an axial-flow turbojet, but was never constructed, as it would have required considerable advances over the state of the art in compressors.
Over to you.
Andy

OK, here is an interesting one, who sponsored the setup of CAC?

Was it Lawrence Wackett himself?
Graeme

He was the chief engineer....

Do you mean the GMH-BHP bit, then?

Wackett was certainly instrumental in getting CAC underway, it was organised by the Government with Broken Hill Pty and General Motors Holdens providing the wherewithall.

Is that more better?

Graeme.

Somebody say something, please ...

Forgot this was still on the go. Essington Lewis?

Sorry for the delay but that is definitely more better Graeme! Correct in fact.

Sorry Jaypee...

Over to you..

Hello? Earth calling Graeme?

Maybe he's recovering from Ashes defeat.

If you'll excuse my impudence in the interest of keeping this thread moving.

Here's a quickie. What was/is the longest serving RAF aeroplane.
I'm talking airframe not type. And operational service not BoBMF.

JP, can we talk about the 1 day series then ???

Back to business, was it the Canberra, photo recon in particular??

Ahh the kwik cricket series. Actually I think the voodoo pins in the brett lee doll musta worked.
Still I'd rather be lucky and hold the ashes than not
I went to see the one dayer vs Scotland. And when you see Brett Lee bowling up close
(the grange is a very small ground) boy is he quick. I don't think you appreciate it on TV.
It was a blowy day and I doubt he was leaving plenty in the tank, but still scary.

But we digress. Yes I believe it was a canberra PR.9 XH131 flew for almost 50 years.
I'm sure we will have some 100 year old operational B-52s flying someday.

But over to you anyway.

I wouldn't be game to stand in the way of some medium pacers, let alone the quickies.

Anyway, what is this?


Not the best pic, and certainly not the best bomber !

Now that is the Lockheed Lightning that snuck up behind a Handley-Page Hereford, scaring it out of it's wings, that is.

But to be serious, i think it's Italian or perhaps Russian, but that's as close as I can get.

Tony

On the right track there Tony, with the country of origin, not the Lightning/Hereford shenanigans.

Sorry guys, I went away on holiday and forgot to tell you! Please carry on.

Graeme.

Welcome back Graeme, please feel free to take your rightful place and I will leave mine running in the background.